Chanyeol sighed for the nth time that evenings, his legs that froze for as long he had been standing there. His arms that was up for a good amount of time, had enough and seemed heavy as Chanyeol let down the hand by his side giving up sadly. What Chanyeol had expected that evening, was the cold snowy environment as the weather forecast had said that early morning and the white fog that seemed to leave his mouth every time he opened his mouth. But what he didn’t expect was that he had to suffer in that horrible cold that the layers of padding didn’t satisfy. Nor he did expect the lack of taxis, for which he had been hailing for the last couple of hours.

There was not one empty taxi seen on the streets to Chanyeol’s dismay. It was a whimsical scene, that Chanyeol had been afraid of. Maybe he wasn’t loud enough, nor his long limbs were not visible to the taxi drivers, every civilian except him had caught at least one vehicle to land them home. Chanyeol felt lonely, on that Christmas Eve, time slipping through his fingers rather fast. He felt regret and planned on hitting himself by letting himself push back the date of buying his friends and family some Christmas gifts. He didn’t decide to until Christmas Eve, a very bad time indeed.

But the tradition of exchanging gifts, or the responsibility of buying them was inevitable as Chanyeol was at least capable of earning a couple of thousands of dollars a month. Chanyeol was not a scrooge at any aspect, he fulfilled every promise of surprise treats requested by his fellows. But that day, Chanyeol was irked off his wits, his boots constantly tapping against the stony pavement, having no wish to last any longer on that road.

You say, Uber could have at least helped him. To Chanyeol’s hell of a luck, there was not a single car available. The traffic was also another reason, the cars would take another thousand hours to get him. Friends? Oh, they were busy gulping down pints of alcohol to actually care and receive their phone. Family? They were busying themselves on their owned restaurants serving Christmas desserts. Chanyeol pondered a bit, judging his close ones’ situation maybe he was the only one without a proper excuse to busy himself.

No one except his poor self was hailing for taxis that freezing evening.

Giving up, he rummaged into his side pockets of his padded jacket, to find his ever-lasting friend, a box of cigarettes. Popping a cigarette from the box of Dunhill, he lit the stick and slipped it between his froze lips. He closed his eyes, as he inhaled the strong smoke, afterward blowing strings of grayish fumes on to the cool air.

Man, this is what I had been always imagined myself. Smoking to your heart contact, hands stuffed inside your pockets, a typical movie scene.

For then, Chanyeol knew he would be only tiring his hands like that if he had stood still any longer, waving his hands only resulting in wasteful efforts. Rather, he could smoke his distressed thoughts away, taking into account of his colorful surroundings, with the obvious Christmas vibes.

His eyes roamed around his surroundings, with the hoard of people (mostly couples) warmed in their layers of clothing. His eyes diverted from the attention-seeking crowd of people buying their last-minute Christmas gifts to someone right beside him. He had seen him for a while then, he seemed to be short, slouched and a little malnourished. His skin was pale enough, his eyes were as if of a puppy, hair faded to a golden honey color. He seemed to be exceptionally highlighted in Chanyeol’s eyes, standing under the sodium lights of the tall street light, illuminating the civilian to be someone remarkably handsome.

Chanyeol noticed as the person tiptoed, bent his body or jumped a little higher to catch the attention of some taxis. Chanyeol could only think, “Been there, done that.”

The stranger was a little odd, with a thin flannel shirt over his white tee seemed to warm him enough for horrifying cold weather. He seemed to survive, Chanyeol thought. Yet, a little tug at his heart told him otherwise, unconsciously trying to take of his coat to offer to the short male.

A stranger. Only a stranger, Chanyeol tried to convince himself with fruitless efforts.

Abandoning the cigarette on the pavement and crushing it with his boots, Chanyeol was about to catch the attention of the odd boy. The sudden bright light blinded his eyes as his ears perked up to the sound of a loud horn. As the light slowly died down, his eyes adjusted to the usual settings but it was wider than ever. There stood the taxi, and most importantly it was empty, free of passengers. It was a chance, a chance that Chanyeol couldn’t afford to miss.

He rushed, his eyes that stuck onto the civilian who seemed to smile, his efforts having its success. Chanyeol stopped still, he had no right to take over someone’s else success. His coat that he worn out off earlier hung over his arm as his shoulders drooped, his heels about to turn away from the scene. The scene where he lost.

His heartbeat took over his ears, his blood rushing to his cheeks. Maybe, even after he didn’t his coat protecting him from that cold, he still felt warm. He couldn’t pinpoint the exact moment he started to feel like that, but that scene of that odd boy smiling, jumping from excitement at the sight of the black vehicle flashed before his eyes as he started to walk away. Unconsciously, a smile took over his lips.

A warm smile.

Before, he could take a step further, he felt a tug at his shirt from behind. He didn’t know why he expected something so unreal. But expectation never reaches reality, does it?

It was none other than, the guy in those flannel shirts. The shirt was so thin, as Chanyeol travelled his sight from those shirt to the person’s face. He was lost. The shorter one had eyes like that of his puppy, Toben. Even his puppy didn’t talk much, move much, his eyes seemed to talk to him. That boy talked to him.

“You…seemed to need a taxi, sir?” he said. His voice, Chanyeol noticed, was warm unlike his hand that still pinched his clothing.

Chanyeol kept a cold exterior, even though the boy in front of him warmed him so much. Made him so nervous inside. Shaking the boy’s hand of him, he slipped into the coat.

“No, I don’t need so. Carry on your way, boy.” He waved him away, with a wave of his large hands. The boy stood still, as if he kept contemplating on something. Chanyeol didn’t know why he kept still too, expecting the shorter one to say something.

The boy suddenly pouted. He freaking pouted, his jelly like pink lips protruding out. Chanyeol couldn’t help but feel like melting inside. Chanyeol hesitated, he didn’t want to be involved further with this handsome of a stranger. Contemplating his choices, he decided to forget the complication of his opportunity costs of this hell of a situation, so he just sighed. He shrugged, closing his eyes, he mumbled.

“Yes, I will get on. Only on one condition, I’ll pay.” Baekhyun didn’t seem to agree as he was about to raise his voice on a single note of sharing. But before he could, he was interrupted by the man who towered over him, grasping him under his shadow.

Baekhyun admitted he was intimidated by the handsomely tall model-like stranger beside him. But that didn’t stop him from by being a kind civilian. Or just an impressing one.

“Boy, just head to what I’m saying. I’m not going to let you go away just like that, I will need your help when the time comes.”

Chanyeol didn’t want to think like that, but the boy in front of him with worn-out flannels and maybe years old stressed jeans didn’t have much to pay. He might be judging from only what he saw on the surface but he was sure to stress on it.

Baekhyun’s hand let go pinching his black tee, heading towards the black cab. Chanyeol followed suit, eyes stuck onto the slouched back of the younger.

It might be Chanyeol great tolerating skills, he didn’t feel the cold outside but the heat of the cab let him go of the frightening merciless winds outside. With his back resting against the leather back of the seat, his eyes travelled to the boy beside him. He felt relieved, the difficulties of being a mere stranger sure met a rather surprising outcome.

Chanyeol was nudged out of his trance with a waving hand in front of his eyes. Chanyeol noticed the boniness of the finger that were displayed in front of him. Chanyeol didn’t want to jump to conclusions, the boy really seemed he didn’t eat for that time-being. Chanyeol reminded himself to take responsibility for the boy’s empty stomach to be filled with goodness.

“Sir. The driver was asking where is the destination you decide to go?” The little one asked with his eyes died of emotion, only clouded with solemnness. Chanyeol peered through the looking glass in front only to meet with doe-eyed ones looking at him intensely. Chanyeol didn’t like the driver impolite stare so he removed his eyes only to rest it on his palm.

“What about you, boy?” He slightly looked sideways only to see the boy looking outside the condensed windows. The boy answered without removing his eyes off the windows, lingering his sight on the crowded civilians outside.

“It doesn’t matter where I go. I have no home.”

Chanyeol gaped at his bold statement but decided not to press further. His involvement with strangers should stay short and ephemeral.

“Gyeongdo, please.”

 

The engine started as the driver mumbled some profanities about how far the destination was and how long it would take from Seoul. Chanyeol thought, an hour was not long enough. Chanyeol made sure to take a look at the driver’s profile stuck on the compartment on the in front.

Do Kyungsoo. Chanyeol noted the name inside his head.

Fifteen minutes passed, the stranger beside Chanyeol didn’t move a little from his earlier position. Chanyeol tried suppressing his emotions taking the hold of him but by that time he already gave up. Sparing a glance at the stranger’s bony hands and then exchanging his eyes to his thicker fingers, he his lips. Without a further thought, he caught hold of the hands of the boy. Grasping it tight in his hands, he was successfully could grab the attention of the boy as the boy jolted from his position, inertia failing that of the boy’s causing him to fall on Chanyeol’s broad chest.

“W-wha- “The boy was shushed by the sudden force on his hand, and might be Chanyeol’s increasing somersaults of his heart. Chanyeol only ignored the eyes of the younger gluing them on the uninteresting view outside.

“Name?” Chanyeol voiced out.

“Baekhyun.” The younger mumbled, as he shifted his uncomfortable situation and placed his head comfortably on Chanyeol’s sturdy chest.

“Yours?”

“Chan-Yeol.” he said spacing out the characters, bolding each of them with his thick voice.

They stayed silent for a minute or two. Chanyeol let go of the cold hands, and wrapped his hands on Baekhyun’s small framed figure, engulfing him in his warmth. Chanyeol didn’t consider the heater warm enough, it was just a medium that could dry them off. Baekhyun inched closer, buried his head into the crook of Chanyeol’s neck and stretched his arms around Chanyeol’s waist. He is like a tired sleepy one-year old, Chanyeol thought. Not that Chanyeol disliked it however and it was pretty obvious with the small smile that crept his lips.

It was a while and Baekhyun lost himself to deep slumber for the rest of the journey. Chanyeol felt his eyes droop but couldn’t afford to have a small nap. He had to stop by a gift store or something later. He kept looking at the unclear view through the condensed windows, reminding himself to stop the car as he reached the particular departmental store.

As much he hated it, the driver had eyes on him for a couple of minutes then. He felt the older guy had to say something but brushed it off and continued to fixate his gaze on more uninteresting view. He heard the driver sigh.

The driver broke the silence with a simple sentence which seemed to throw Chanyeol off.

“He is just a stranger. Why even bother?”

Chanyeol didn’t answer but he couldn’t deny pondering on the sentence a bit. It irked him off, to be honest. He didn’t know the stranger sleeping on his chest any better as minutes slipped away but it didn’t stop his feelings for taking care of the younger to dim. It was more like an instinct or Chanyeol phrased “love at first sight” that way.

After these rather close moment with stranger, he was grateful but a little saddened by the fact it wouldn’t last any longer than that. Chanyeol felt the blonde locks of the boy tickling his sides as he shifted a bit in his position to make the boy comfortable. He couldn’t catch what the driver had said but it sure made him content.

“He is a 20-year-old. Take care of him.”

Chanyeol was grateful and changed his only opinion of the impolite driver to someone of a cold personality.

“Stop by the big departmental store that is situated on the left-hand side.” Chanyeol voiced to the driver as he nudged the little one beside him to wake the stranger from his nap.

“We are here.” Chanyeol whispered as he brushed his hands on the smaller one’s limbs to make him warm. Baekhyun fluttered his eyes open only to meet with the eyes of curiosity of the taller one. He yawned and stretched his body that seemed to be a storage of laziness. Chanyeol felt his heart jump a bit while he saw Baekhyun imitating his actions of a cat after a slumber.

He loved cats.

The car stopped with a jerk forward. Handling a note 100,000 won to the driver, grateful for his hard work, he was about to open the door but was abruptly stopped by the other company. Baekhyun patted the shoulders of the driver forward exchanging smiles and a small word of gratefulness. The driver nodded and uttered,

“Anything for you, my friend.”

Baekhyun signaled with his thumb and index finger into a shape of phone and muttered a small “call me” to the taxi driver. Chanyeol was surprised would be a little of understatement. Without a look back, Chanyeol removed himself from the heat to meet again with the cold. He slowly walked away and didn’t spare a glance back to see if the little one was coming. It was a burning feeling inside him but he felt small and defeated as he saw the little one’s interactions with the mysterious mere taxi driver.

He felt like a stranger should.

“Hey.” He heard a croaked-up voice of the one who clouded his mind that moment. His jacket was held tightly from behind. He shrugged off the hand of the little one. He turned about facing the puppy like face of the shorter, Baekhyun. His frown was soon replaced with a smile. He pretended.

“Let’s go eat something, shall we?” He took Baekhyun’s cold hands in his as he dragged him behind. Chanyeol was handling his façade pretty well, smiling when he should. But the feelings that rose within him was rather uncomfortable. He felt hurt. Hurt by the fact that Baekhyun had no relationship with him, except they were mere civilians that met up on the streets of Seoul.

Beside the department store was a store that served well-known black bean noodles. Chanyeol’s apartment was not far, only two blocks away. Chanyeol made Baekhyun to take a seat opposite of him, their table situated at the corner of the shop. Chanyeol glanced over the blonde who seemed to shift nervously on his chair, with unsure glances around him.

Chanyeol put his hand over Baekhyun’s, assuring him he was there. A stranger was there and it tinged Chanyeol’s heart with pain. Chanyeol signaled the waiter to bring in his usual, adding two fingers to show he needed more than one servings that night. The tall waiter only nodded, disappearing behind the curtains. Chanyeol shrugged off the looks that the tall waiter gave to the person sitting in front of him. It was a gesture of someone who seemed to recognize someone. A look of fear.

“You know that taxi driver?” Chanyeol asked, eyebrows cocked up.

“He is a close friend. Haven’t seen him for a while.” Baekhyun answered, pupils shaking as he did. He didn’t calm down, even though Chanyeol thought a small conversation would change him for the better. Frankly, Chanyeol didn’t understand the latter’s nervousness when earlier he all about “having no home” and practically reaching up to this restaurant with him intentionally rather.

After a while of exchanging no words, Chanyeol felt like giving up. He shouldn’t have invited a stranger along with him, as much he loved seeing every movement of the said person. Chanyeol rested his eyes on his palms, playing with his cuticles sometime. He felt his fingers were so ugly compared to the thin, pale fingers of the person named Baekhyun.

“Can we go somewhere else, Sir?” Chanyeol shifted his eyes from his empty palms to the shivering body of Baekhyun. His lips quivering, eyes begging, Chanyeol didn’t waste another second grabbing his hand and dragging him out of the noodle house.

Chanyeol didn’t look at the figure that stood behind him. He only said some small words for him to remember.

“I am a stranger but that doesn’t mean I don’t understand.”

Chanyeol didn’t see the tears that flowed from the shorter one’s eyes. Someone finally cared for the poor boy, took pity in him. Cared for him, Baekhyun smiled at that thought.

Chanyeol entered the convenience store, wasting no more time. He took a red basket, wishing it to be filled with thoughtful gifts by the end of the end. He dismissed the ill thoughts of having hard choices between products but the person that grabbed his right hand rather tightly could help him some way or another.

Chanyeol reminded Baekhyun as they walked down the clothes aisle, shooting some glances at some warm clothing,

“Don’t call me sir.”

Baekhyun argued with,

“I was just trying to polite.”

Baekhyun didn’t know why his hands sweated on this cold weather, but Chanyeol next statement did make him feel those flipping heartbeats.

“Don’t make me feel bad, Baekhyun-ah.”

Chanyeol sighed. He couldn’t decide, of course. Baekhyun nudged him with his elbows, Chanyeol just dismissed Baekhyun’s concerned look with a wave of his hands.

“I can’t decide what to give to my family or friends, for that matter.”

Baekhyun only smiled at Chanyeol’s silliness as his gaze remained fixated on a red scarf.

“Don’t but what they want, buy what they need.” Baekhyun removed his gaze as he walked up forward.

Chanyeol lingered his eyes on the red scarf, reminding himself to but that later on. For someone who needed it.

After listing the things his family seemingly wanted, his concerns were lessened. Baekhyun did help him a lot in that case, asking several questions that resulted him to rack his brains in order to find the right answers.

“You should be that. What’s that called?” Chanyeol itched his hair, wondering.

“Psychologist, you mean?”

“Yeah, that.” Chanyeol smiled with his whites, pointing at particularly nowhere.

“I am one, I assume.” Baekhyun sighed as he buried his hands into his jeans pockets.

“What do you mean?” Chanyeol trailed behind him, the heavy basket on his left hand.

“Nothing.” Baekhyun shrugged.

Chanyeol’s legs were tired, as both of them seemed to a least 10 rounds of this department store. Baekhyun didn’t seem at the same disheveled state as Chanyeol was, as he stood judging the customers that were entering the departmental store.

Chanyeol suddenly remembered his promise earlier. He grabbed Baekhyun’s hand in a haste, dragging him to the aisle they walked before at first. Baekhyun wide-eyed looked at Chanyeol, as Chanyeol seemed to struggle unwrapping the red sweater off the mannequin.

“What are you- “Baekhyun was soon interrupted as the red scarf was soon wrapped around his neck.

“He is about the same size as you. It will probably suit him, don’t you think?” Chanyeol grinned.

“Yeah.” Baekhyun smiled back, but it wasn’t a sincere one.

Baekhyun knew that.

As Chanyeol queued for the cashier, Baekhyun couldn’t suppress the curiosity in him, as he asked Chanyeol anyway.

“Was it for your boyfriend?”

Chanyeol looked taken back, but he answered anyway. Eyes everywhere other than at Baekhyun, he answered.

“Boyfriend? I wouldn’t consider him that. But I like him pretty much. Thinking back, he wanted this so much.” He said as he pointed at the scarf inside the basket. Baekhyun admitted it by himself, he felt hurt a bit. He started to feel the cold, even in that heated store.

Checking the items out, Chanyeol offered some of the instant rice to Baekhyun along with some canned kimchi. Baekhyun turned down the offer, but Chanyeol said otherwise.

“I will eat with you. I am hungry too.”

 

Taking a seat next to each other, Chanyeol and Baekhyun devoured the food served. Chanyeol passed some of his kimchi on to Baekhyun’s plate.

“Kimchi best describes the restaurant. Don’t you think?” Chanyeol asked.

“It does. But all we are eating is a canned one.”

Chanyeol embarrassed, continued eating.

They were much comfortable, exchanging words about their daily life. Baekhyun still kept pretty much to himself and Chanyeol did most of the talking. Chanyeol wanted the night to last for an infinite time.

Finally, even though Chanyeol did stretch the night to last by cracking some jokes here and there and listening to Baekhyun’s occasional hums as he babbled all about his high school life, it was time for home. Reaching out to the bags carried by the frail figure beside him and carrying the heavy contents himself, it was Chanyeol’s gesture of “that’s it”.

That was all.

Chanyeol hands unconsciously quivered as his hands brushed along the cold skin of the stranger. It was as if the memories he stored of that night came flooding back to him and honestly, he didn’t want to leave. The stranger, unaffected, looked at Chanyeol at a certain way. Among all the emotions that Baekhyun showed Chanyeol, Chanyeol didn’t know of which category it belonged to.

Baekhyun was broken inside. The farewell was something he wanted to avoid for the rest of the night. But at the end of the day, the holiday upcoming next day, the customers that entered the departmental store every moment, reminded him, the farewell was inevitable. He couldn’t spend his night with a perfect stranger he met on the streets.

Baekhyun didn’t fully understand the difficulties of being a stranger. But slowly it all settled in him.

As the two exited the store, the cold hit their faces like a slap. Keeping the white plastic bag on the concrete ground, Chanyeol decided on something. Something a stranger would never do.

Grabbing Baekhyun’s hands, he pulled him towards himself. With a close proximity between them, Chanyeol let his finger tips brush against the dried skin of the shorter, as if remembering Baekhyun’s small features on his finger pads and storing it in his cognitive. Baekhyun took it all in, with his eyes closed.

Might be the cold, that numbed Chanyeol’s senses, as the tears were soon tickling down his crimson cheeks. Slowly reaching out to the light flannel shirt, he pulled it off the younger’s weak limbs. The coat was soon off Chanyeol’s broad frame and then adorned the smaller one in warmth. The flannel was long forgotten on the cold grounds. Bending down, Chanyeol shuffled through the white plastics rather frantically in looking for a certain necessity.

As Chanyeol’s hands felt the soft texture of the scarf he pulled it out. Wrapping it around the neck of the blonde, he looked at him. He muttered,

“I told you, he was the same size as you.”

 

Chanyeol pulled the younger against his chest as he rested his chin on the crown of his head. He wept, for the chances to be discovered, for excuses to arrive, so that another night could come. His black high-necked sweater, was drenched with Baekhyun’s salty tears, even though it shouldn’t. His quiet sobs were muted, his fragile arms clutched the black fabric tight in his grip and his silent mumbles of gratefulness was not missed. Chanyeol warmth that embraced Baekhyun’s cold, engulfing Baekhyun into unrealistic imaginations.

Maybe, Baekhyun was in love with a tall stranger, in a black coat, smoking his concerns away. Maybe Baekhyun was lucky enough to call that handsome stranger into the taxi, because those moments of bliss resting his head on his chest was worth it.

When realization dawned on them that the night was not going to last any longer, Chanyeol let go. Chanyeol tip-toed over Baekhyun, and could see the former taxi standing there, with it’s headlights brighter than ever. Chanyeol took a last look at the beautiful stranger and passed a full-toothed smile. It was returned with a warm one. Taking the plastic bags in his hand and of course, the flannel, he turned his back to the blonde, heading towards his destination.

Chanyeol didn’t look back.